SAN ANGELO, Texas – The Eastern New Mexico women’s basketball team suffered its first loss in Lone Star Conference play as the Hounds fell 79-52 to a red-hot Angelo State inside Stephens Arena on Thursday night.
In the battle of two undefeated teams in conference play, the Hounds (9-4, 4-1 LSC) couldn’t overcome a cold start as Eastern trailed 16-2 after one quarter of play after shooting 1-of-12 (eight percent) from the floor and committing eight turnovers.
Angelo State (10-1, 5-0 LSC) led by as much as 15 at 19-4 with 9:30 to go on a three-pointer before ENMU mounted a rally. The Greyhounds strung together a 10-2 run over the next 3:14 off a pair of baskets by Alivia Lewis as well as scores from Chelsea Hunter, Kamirah Decker, and Zamorye Cox to trim the deficit to 21-14 with 6:16 left.
However, the Hounds went cold once again during the last six minutes while the Rambelles rattled off a 13-2 run to hold a 34-16 edge at the halftime break.
Despite the offensive struggles in the first period, the Greyhounds responded well in the second by scoring 14 points on 7-of-14 (50 percent) from the floor.
The Belles stretched their advantage to as much as 19 early in the third quarter before the Greyhounds put together another strong comeback. Cox, Clay, and Decker combined to score all 15 points during a 15-6 run to bring the deficit back to 10 at 43-33 with 4:07 remaining in the third.
Angelo State caught fire from the floor in the final four minutes, closing out the quarter by scoring 12 of the next 18 points on a perfect 5-for-5 from the field to make it a 55-39 advantage heading into the fourth.
The Rambelles remained hot in the fourth quarter as ASU scored 24 points on 10-of-20 (50-percent) shooting to pull away with the 79-52 win.
The Hounds improved on the offensive side of the ball in the second half, as ENMU shot 14-of-35 (40 percent) compared to 8-of-26 (31 percent) in the first half. After committing 14 first half turnovers, the Hounds limited the giveaway to just four in the second.
Cox led the Greyhounds offensive efforts by scoring a career-high 15 points on 7-of-16 shooting. Lewis recorded her second double-double of the season with 10 points and 10 rebounds while Clay rounded out the double-figure scoring with 10 points and eight rebounds. Decker provided a spark off the bench for ENMU by chipping in eight points on 4-of-6 shot attempts and corralled four boards.
Eastern will look to bounce back this weekend as the Hounds will wrap up their six-game road stand at Texas A&M-Kingsville at 1 p.m. on Saturday.
